ROCHESTER, N.Y. – As the Rochester City School District welcomes students and staff back to school, payroll issues continue. Friday marks the second day of the new school year and is supposed to be payday for district staff. However, many employees remain uncertain if they will receive their checks.
The payroll problems began two months ago with the transition to Oracle, a new financial software. Nearly one thousand teachers, paraprofessionals, and teaching aides have been affected. The transition to Oracle has been more than a decade in the making, costing nearly $46 million.
News10NBC’s Kristi Blake asked RCSD Superintendent Dr. Eric Jay Rosser if he’s confident that salaried staff will be paid on time and properly.
Superintendent Dr. Eric Rosser said, “So one of the things that we did proactively, as was we provided opportunities for all staff members to be able to view their payslips. So once we submitted our payroll to our entity that then sends direct deposits to banks. We then provide an opportunity for all staff to be able to view their payslips and if they see any discrepancies, be able to provide them with an opportunity to then alert us so that we can then, address those issues that they may see in their payslips.”
He acknowledged that while the issue was inherited shortly after he took the position, it is now his responsibility to resolve it.
Rosser himself was impacted by the Oracle issues, but he said his pay problems have been resolved. The district expects all payroll issues to be settled by mid-month.
Despite anticipating some challenges with the software transition, the district did not foresee the extent of these problems. The cause of the issues remains unclear.
The State Comptroller sent a letter to the Superintendent saying concerns related to employee payroll processing are significant enough to merit immediate attention. The full letter can be found here. The state comptroller has requested a detailed list of impacted employees, delayed and missing wages, and the district’s actions to resolve the problem.
Eric Jay Rosser, PhD – 09.04.25DownloadRosser expressed full support for the audit, aiming to identify the issues and prevent future occurrences. All options are on the table, including determining if Oracle is a good for the district.
Dr. Eric Jay Rosser, superintendent of RCSD, said, “At the end of the day, we need to do right by our employees. We need to make sure that we have a system, a school district that’s in place that meets the needs of our children and then also is supportive of those who support children.”
RTA President Adam Urbanski sent a letter to teachers on Sunday, Aug. 31, stating that all four unions are prepared to pursue more serious lawsuits depending on the outcome of Friday’s payday. Here’s the letter:
Colleagues,
As the summer recess is nearly over, I know that some teachers are wondering when they will finally get paid, or paid accurately, for the work they’ve already done. And most RCSD employees, including teachers, are also wondering if the District will be able to meet payroll correctly on September 5 and beyond.
Superintendent Rosser expressed “great confidence” that RTA bargaining unit members will indeed receive their regular pay as scheduled because the District did a test run with Oracle that confirms this. We hope so too but, despite the District’s assurances, we will believe it if/when it actually happens. He also indicated that some issues with extra pay and retro pay may not be resolved until the September 19 payroll.
In a united front with our sister unions (BENTE, RAP and ASAR), we have spent the summer addressing the issues that already affected our members this summer. Of the approximately 140 teachers who were adversely impacted, some of those cases were corrected but most remain unresolved. And all along we have demanded that the District develop a back-up plan to avoid an even greater potential crisis once schools reopen.
Just last Thursday, the District released an update on the Oracle debacle (see attached). It includes a summary of challenges, issues they claim to have resolved, current steps, and what to expect. They tried to make their report sound like they have things under control but it is far from being convincing. That is why we support the calls for an independent investigation and a forensic audit of the RCSD’s experience with Oracle.
In addition to filing Class Action Grievances, we have already reached out to the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor and are awaiting a response to the issues we’ve brought to their attention. Our attorneys are prepared to file further litigation and lawsuits in case that becomes warranted by what happens with the September 5 payroll. And we will also seek to involve the NYS Comptroller and the Governor’s office, if necessary. Meanwhile, we have already begun negotiating with Superintendent Rosser on how to reimburse our members for interest on delayed payments and damages resulting from absent or inaccurate compensation.
The District’s payroll issues may be just the tip of the iceberg in their incompetent and botched implementation of the Oracle Fusion data platform. All this may take the District some time to resolve but we are doing everything possible to ensure that it will, indeed, be resolved. As always, we’ll keep you informed about the progress of our efforts on your behalf.
Enjoy the rest of the Labor Day weekend and please join us at tomorrow’s Labor Day parade (see attachment below). Expect to hear from us again soon.
Adam Urbanski, RTA President
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